2 weeks ago
35
Dominik Szoboszlai has revealed Cristiano Ronaldo kept his promise to the Liverpool midfielder by gifting him a shirt following Portugal’s 2-2 draw against Hungary on Tuesday.
Szoboszlai had requested the former Manchester United star’s jersey after last month’s World Cup qualifier in Budapest, which Portugal won 3-2. Sadly for Szoboszlai, Ronaldo had already given it away, but vowed to gift the 24-year-old a shirt in the reverse fixture.
And that’s exactly what happened on Tuesday, in the wake of the 2-2 draw in Lisbon. Both players were even on the scoresheet, with Ronaldo netting a brace and Szoboszlai grabbing a dramatic injury-time equalizer to frustrate the Al-Nassr man.
Speaking after the game, Szoboszlai was asked by Hungarian outlet Nemzeti Sport if Ronaldo had kept his promise, to which Szoboszlai replied: “Yes, there was a shirt swap.”
Szoboszlai’s late goal sparked jubilant scenes and keeps Hungary’s faint chances of securing an automatic qualification spot at the World Cup alive.
With two games remaining, Hungary is five points behind group leaders Portugal, meaning a play-off spot seems more likely for the country.
The Eastern European nation faces Armenia and the Republic of Ireland next month in a double header that will seal its World Cup fate.
Speaking after the Portugal match, Szoboszlai said: “I'm proud of this whole team. We fought all the way through the game.
“We started well, there was a slight dip in our game, but then we got ourselves together. I can only say positive things.
“My goal depended on the fact that I was so tired that I couldn't go for the short [corner] anymore. I was hoping that it would come for the long one. I was confident until the end that we would manage to equalize.”
At 24, Szoboszlai has already earned 59 international caps and has captained the side since 2023.
He is also one of the few players to enjoy a positive start to the season at Liverpool. The ex-RB Leipzig man has missed just one match all campaign - the Carabao Cup win over Southampton - and has featured in every minute of the other 10 fixtures.
Szoboszlai has been deployed at right-back, in a deeper midfield role, and in a more advanced no.10 position by Arne Slot.
Despite admitting to feeling “so tired” at the end of Tuesday’s match in Lisbon, Szoboszlai is likely to be the starting XI against United this weekend.
English (US) ·